


Buddy

by Dolimir



Category: The Sentinel
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-04-15
Updated: 2012-04-15
Packaged: 2017-11-03 17:52:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/384219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dolimir/pseuds/Dolimir
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Blair and a dog.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Buddy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [justmej](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=justmej).



> Written for JustMeJ for donating to my birthday 'Random Acts of Kindness' charity drive. She wanted a story about Blair and a dog.
> 
> *-*-*-*-*-*

“Damn it.”

Blair hissed as he pulled his bloody hand away from the top of his hip. While the bullet had grazed him versus penetrated him, it was a deep wound and bleed profusely. In addition, his skin was clammy and he felt light-headed. Shock, no matter how mild, was going to make surviving a manhunt problematic. Taking a deep breath, he pressed his hand back over the wound, trying not to whimper as his side screamed in protest. 

Once the buzzing in his ears calmed, he tried to get a feel of his surroundings, which was difficult considering clouds were blocking the moon’s light. He was leaning against a trash dumpster with his back against an abandoned brick building and wished, not for the first time, that he was a sentinel. Or, at the very least, that his sentinel would realize something was amiss and come looking for him. A cold breeze blew off the ocean and tossed debris around the alley, making him ridiculously grateful for the protection the dumpster provided. 

He had no idea how long or how far he’d run or if anyone was still looking for him. The undercover operation had gone bad the moment he stepped into the dock warehouse. Just the night before, he and Jim had discussed the possibility of there being a mole in the precinct, with Jim taking the stance that all the bad seeds had finally been uncovered. Blair snorted, obviously Jim had been mistaken. And he was totally going to lay a justified ‘I told you so’ on the man as soon as he saw him. 

Blair tried to calm his breathing. Just where in the hell was Jim anyway? The warehouse had been surrounded. He should’ve been able to run out into the arms of his colleagues, but Smythe had obviously planned for every contingency and had escaped through the sewers. While Smythe’s goons engaged the police, Blair had followed their leader, not willing to let the crime boss get away from them yet again. Unfortunately, Smythe had been intimately familiar with the twists and turns of the underground labyrinth. 

A lucky shot and the tables had turned on a dime. He’d barely been able to get out of the sewers. He was pretty sure, Smythe had run out of bullets somewhere along the way, but at this point, he really didn’t need a gun to kill Blair. He could just strangle him or knife him. 

What he needed was backup, but to get it he was going to have to go back to the warehouse, which meant getting on his feet. Blair bit back another whimper.

Sighing, he moved his hand from his wound and placed it on the ground beside him. A deep growl emanated from behind the dumpster. Startled, Blair leaned back against the brick wall and peered into the blackness behind the container. 

“Hello?” he called out softly. 

The growl turned almost quizzical. 

“I didn’t mean to intrude,” Blair said. “But I really needed someplace safe to regroup. And since you’re here, I’m assuming it’s pretty darn safe, right?”

Blair could hear the whoops of a Coast Guard ship as it moved through the harbor on its way to provide backup for the police surrounding Symthe’s warehouse, but nothing more from his companion. 

“I’m not going to hurt you, buddy,” he tried again. 

Making sure to keep his movements slow, he leaned away from the dumpster, far enough to pull the jerky from his back pocket. It has been Jim’s idea of a joke after Blair complained about always getting hungry in the middle of long operations. 

The dog growled again. At least he hoped it was a dog. Rats didn’t growl, did they?

Returning to an upright position made him pant and he gave himself a moment to let the pain level out. Once the throbbing became manageable, he opened the package and broke off a piece of jerky. Ignoring the continued growls, he slowly put his arm behind the dumpster, making sure the jerky stayed between his fingers. The growling intensified and he realized that his peace offering might have not been the smartest way to go. But before he could pull back, a warm breath blew over his fingers and the jerky was taken delicately from his hand.

Bringing his arm back, he broke off another piece of meat and moved his hand back behind the dumpster. However, his hand hit fur almost immediately. 

“Oops. Sorry about that, buddy.” He lifted the jerky, which was again taken gently from his hands. 

This time when he brought his arm back, the dog followed. 

“Hey there, handsome,” he greeted. 

While it was pretty dark, Blair could see some features and guessed that his companion was probably a juvenile, dark-colored pit bull. The dog was looking down at Blair’s hands. Obeying, the silent plea, he broke off another piece of jerky and laid it in his outstretched hand. The dog gobbled it up as soon as Blair’s hand was within reach. 

“Are you hungry, buddy?” Blair slowly lifted his hand and scratched under the dog’s jowls, smiling when the dog leaned into his hand. “I know,” Blair said sympathetically. Pulling his hand back, he removed the last piece from the package and held it up for the dog. “This is it, bud. It’s the last piece.”

The dog made a small whining noise and stretched his neck forward again. Blair chuckled and gave the meat to the dog, this time checking the dog’s neck for a collar, but found nothing. The dog butted his head into Blair’s shoulder and Blair obligingly began to run his hand back and forth along the dog’s side. 

“Who’s a good boy? Yes, you’re a good boy.”

Blair closed his eyes momentarily, enjoying the warm of the dog as it crowded next to him.

“I really need to get out of here,” he finally whispered. 

The dog cocked his head at him and nudged him again. 

“Yes, you can come.”

Putting his hand back on the ground, he bit back a laugh as the dog head-butted him again. “No, I really need get up.”

“That’s not exactly true.”

Blair swallowed a gasp as Symthe moved slowly into view. 

“You have been a pain in my ass,” Symthe said with disgust. “You and that partner of yours.”

“Impeding on your enterprises, are we? That’s so sad.” Blair knew better than to egg on a suspect, but he also knew that he was essentially screwed. Symthe had managed to knock his gun from his hand during the melee that had resulted in his getting shot. His only hope was that Jim was looking for him and might hear them talking. 

“Yes, you have, but I’m not overly concerned.”

Symthe raised his hand and Blair could see the glint of metal pointed toward him. 

“This isn’t Dirty Harry, Smythe. We both know you’re out of bullets.”

Smythe laughed. “You’re right. I was. But you weren’t.”

The urge to swear was overwhelming, but Blair refrained, not wanting his last words on Earth to be vulgarity. 

“Nothing to say?” Smythe laughed again. “I thought not. Good-bye, Mr. Sandburg.”

“That’s Detective Sandburg to you, asshole.”

A second later, the dog at his side sprang forward and locked its jaws around Symthe’s gun arm. Smythe screamed in pain and dropped the gun, but the pit bull held on tight, shaking his head back and forth as he continued to growl deep and low. 

Blair pushed himself off the ground, hissing in pain as he did so. He picked up the gun and pointed it at Symthe. 

“Buddy, let him go. Let him go!”

The dog reluctantly obeyed, although he stood taut and ready to attack again if Smythe so much as flinched. 

“Good boy.” Blair patted the dog with his free hand, then pulled a set of cuffs from his back pocket. “You know the drill, Smythe. Don’t even think about trying anything or next time I won’t order my partner off you.”

Smythe obediently put his hands behind his back and Blair quickly handcuffed him, making sure the cuffs were just a notch past too tight. While he was always careful not to abuse his suspects, he wanted Smythe concentrating on something other than getting the gun away from him again. “All right, we’re going to head back to the warehouse now. Keep it slow and steady.”

Blair couldn’t help but think they made a strange procession, with Smythe in the lead and him practically listing behind him. Buddy walked beside Blair, on his bad side, leaning his body against Blair’s legs as if trying to keep him upright. 

They had no sooner emerged from the alleyway, when Henri and Rafe drove by. The car screeched to a halt, then backed up several feet. 

Blair stumbled back against the closest building and slid himself to the concrete, grateful he didn’t have to continue on any longer. Buddy whined and sat beside him, practically on his lap, leaning in and licking Blair’s face. 

“We did it, Buddy. We did it.” Sighing once, Blair let the darkness take him. 

*-*-*-*-*-*

“Blair? Can you hear me? Blair?”

Jim.

Blair rose through the layers of unconsciousness and blinked his eyes open. Jim was squatting in front of him, although he was five feet away. Henri and Rafe both had their guns pulled and aimed at him. 

Shaking his head slightly, he blinked again. The movement brought Buddy back to his side. Blair raised his arm and hugged the dog as the pit bull leaned into him. 

“What’s going on?” he asked Jim. 

“You’re friend here has been objecting to letting us get any closer.”

Blair smiled as he pulled the dog closer. “You really are a good boy, aren’t you?”

The dog licked his face, but whipped his head around and growled when Jim stood. 

“Hey,” Blair said in a soft but stern voice. He grabbed the dog’s jaw and swung it back so the dog had to look him in the face. “Jim’s a good guy. The best. We don’t bite Jim.”

Buddy cocked his head at Blair. 

“I know. It’s been a hell of a night, but these guys are good guys. They’re my friends. Just like you’re my friend.”

Sighing, Buddy laid beside Blair, resting his chin on his paws as his gaze bounced between Jim and Blair. Blair continued to stroke his back, then looked up at Jim. 

“He saved me. From Symthe. If it hadn’t of been for him, I wouldn’t be here.”

Jim nodded, then slowly moved to Blair’s other side and knelt beside him. Buddy lifted his head and rested it on Blair’s knee, keeping an eye on Jim. 

Listening to Jim’s soft reassuring murmurs, Blair once again drifted to sleep.

*-*-*-*-*-*  
“Um.” Jim stopped in front of the loft door, keys dangling from his fingers. 

“Um?”

“I got you something in celebration of your getting out of the hospital.”

 

Blair grinned as Jim opened the door, but stopped in his tracks as soon as he crossed the threshold. Buddy sat beside the kitchen island, his tongue lolling from his mouth, his tail wagging back and forth.

“Buddy!” Blair dropped to his knees, which was all the permission the dog needed. Racing forward he danced in front of Blair, his whole body wiggling with happiness. Blair hugged the dog and received a lick on the face in return. He turned and looked curiously at Jim. 

Jim shrugged. “He was there for you when I wasn’t. Besides, I’m totally on board with your having an extra protector. Lord knows, I need all the help I can get.”

“Are you saying we can keep him?”

Kneeling beside them, Jim nodded and scratched Buddy behind the ears. “We’ve been getting to know each other while you’ve been in the hospital and we’ve reached an understanding.”

Laughing with happiness, Blair brushed his lips over Jim’s, then bestowed a kiss on the top of Buddy’s head as well.


End file.
